[Closed] Gravel or XC MTB

I doubt that anyone on here rides all of exactly the same tracks as you do, at the same frequency or with the same requirements for speed and comfort. Therefore, any advice is likely to be largely irrelevant, especially as you've not outlined any of that in your post.

I doubt that anyone on here rides all of exactly the same tracks as you do, at the same frequency or with the same requirements for speed and comfort. Therefore, any advice is likely to be largely irrelevant, especially as you’ve not outlined any of that in your post.

thanks

I think geography is king with expectations as prime minister

From this house I’d say gravel bike unless getting to the 2 mountain bike woods is what you care about

But for planning a wide variety of rides in beds, herts and bucks I’d say gravel bike. But that’s because it’s really hard to eliminate all road and most trails aren’t technical

Think scotroutes has answered it really. For my riding (New Forest - lots of fire roads connected by roads with a bit of single track I prefer cyclo cross bike as MTBs just feel slower and more cumbersome). In reality they are not really much slower but they feel it which is all that counts when I am not racing anybody.

Thanks Kerley,

Very much depends where you plan to ride. Canals, bridal ways, across fields and some tarmac to link it all up then go gravel. Avoiding all roads and wanting to do long off road routes with some technical stuff go XC.

I have a GB and a fully rigid carbon XC. Planning on getting some suss for the XC as at the moment it covers the GB bases, just not as well. I'm going to give it the summer but I have a feeling the gap between where the GB ends and my full suss start isn't big enough for the XC to be worth keeping, especially with the lack of time I have to ride atm.

Ultimately for me the GB has a wider range of usage compared to the XC so if I had to choose I'd keep the drop bars. It really does come down to personal choice though and where you'll be riding. Oh, and do you have another MTB? If not my scales would probably tip back towards XC.....

Living on the edge of the Brecon Beacons, riding my two (superficially similar - rigid MTB and monstercross) bikes back to back along same/similar routes, I've been surprised how much quicker the monstercross is based on tracker app times. The frameset was a previous MTB build, so the main difference is the tyres and (wide, flared) drop bars. It's really only limited by the cable disk brakes imposed by the monstercross mix'n'match components. I could foresee a future where I was running the/a monstercross with hydraulic calipers that would render the rigid MTB redundant. Whether that's an answer to your question depends on where and what you ride.

As others have said, it depends on what and where you (intend to) ride.

And also, what other bike/s you have.

If you already have a MTB, another MTB may not be needed.

If you don't have an MTB already, but enjoy some tech/singletrack, a gravel bike may not be enough.

A (my) gravel bike is Ti, 700x40/42 lightly knobbly tyres. Great for longer, mixed terrain rides ... so, quiet linking roads, gravel (obvs), canal towpath, easy bridleways, paths through the woods. It will pick its way through some light techy XC stuff, and does flow smooth singletrack nicely too. But really, its not the tool for chunder, or steep, or rocky stuff at all.

If you want something a bit more capable offroad, the light carbon HT will do a better job, with potentially a slight aero and/or rolling resistance (depending on tyre choice) disadvantage on long road / easy gravel sections.

An XC MTB can go anywhere a gravel bike can, vice versa not so much

Specialized Chisel ltd edition frame with Sid ultimate SL fork and light components..mine comes in at 9.5kg. I can sit in my clubs road peleton comfortably.

If your only reason to want to try off road cycling is to avoid cars then obviously get a gravel bike.

However if you're open to becoming more adventurous with your bike handling skills get an XC MTB.

I used to have a lot of fun on my short commutes riding MTBs from a coastal town to a village on the outskirts of town. Riding down steps/stairsets in town, dropping off ledges, racing along farm tracks to/from work. Now though, it's busier roads, slightly longer, and less time for commuting so a gravel bike would be a better choice for me if I was able to take it.

My Whippet started the year on gravel tyres , then 29 tyres and this week 2.8 x 27.5.
Why limit what your bike can do?

I'm deffo in the XC MTB camp here. My gravel bike has been relegated to a winter road bike role. All the 'fun' bits of gravel are better on an XC MTB - sooner or later the flared gravel bike bars, which are getting wider and wider, will evolve to straight bars.

I'm like you I have had two serious road crashes and have been riding mainly gravel since lockdown. If your limited to one bike I'd go XC MTB and that's from someone who mainly rides a gravel bike. For example I'm planning a a week in the Lakes in May we will be mostly riding easy gravel routes but we are taking hardtails so we can do a bit of mountain biking if the we feel like it or the weather is crap and we go to the trail centres. The range of terrain you can ride on hardtail is much wider than you can on a gravel bike. But if you only going to ride tracks that can be done on a gravel bike get a gravel bike as it just more fun.

I used to race a lot of MTB orienteering all over the UK. On many of the Midlands course there was obviously a large amount of road miles interspersed with gravel tracks and bridleways and canal towpaths. Ratio would be about 70/30 tarmac to offroad. I sometimes took the gravel bike over the carbon HT but always regretted it. It was never faster and always more uncomfortable overall. I don't think I have ridden my gravel bike more than 3 times in the past 2 years. If I could only have one bike to do it all it would definitely have flat bars and a front fork as a bare minimum.

A carbon hardtail will be quite versatile, you can obviously use it off-road, or, at a push, on road too.
If i was down to one bike i think that would be my choice.
But it only just edges a nice gravel bike.

I got a gravel bike, but I don’t expect it to ride like a mtb or be comfortable on anything but fireroads and easy singletrack. I’d be disappointed if I did.

I’ve ridden it down some quite hard stuff, but mostly to get to some good gravel, or cut the corner between roads. Its a totally different mindset to going out on my mtb where it’s all about the descents.

If you already have a mountain bike, or you're looking for substitute road riding, I would buy a gravel bike.

Ratio would be about 70/30 tarmac to offroad. I sometimes took the gravel bike over the carbon HT but always regretted it. It was never faster and always more uncomfortable overall.

Hmm, interesting. For that kind of ratio, I'd generally pick the gravel bike. Speed I gain on the road far outweighs the time it costs me off-road (obviously a bit terrain dependant).

Smoother tracks, fireroads and paths, RUPPs, simple trails, towpaths, tarmac transitions etc = gravel (or monstercross for gnarlier of same)

Playing in the woods, rock gardens, air, singletrack, transporting bike in car to playparks etc = MTB

IME, YMMV etc.

Where do you want the compromise the road or the trails? At the moment I compromise on the road and even though minimum good off road, but I enjoy the few small drops and jumps more. At other times it been the other way and total trip speed was more important and I just road what was pretty much a road bike off road. My rides then where much bigger all day rides.

I've 3 bikes. A gravel, a trail HT and an enduro-d FS.

Sometimes I decide the route and pick a bike, other times I pick a bike and then decide the route.

As others have said though, geography is key to your decision.

I use both on a regular basis. There's no answer really, it's all personal preference. But generally speaking, a good XC bike can be almost as fast as a fat tyred gravel bike, and in my opinion is a lot more fun when you go properly off-road. A gravel bike always feels a bit sketchy and stressful, but that might be your thing. The lack of hand positions on a mountain bike can become a bit tedious on long rides, and you'll not be sprinting up any climbs with forks bobbing up and down - it's usually a calm, seated affair. Gravel bikes are great too though and probably the most versatile, especially if you're coming from the road. It'll likely feel sluggish compared to a fast road bike, but can still power up climbs and great for doing big miles.

Of course, there's a lot of crossover between gravel and mtb too, depending on the bikes you're looking at.

Echos lots of the above, it depends on what else you have and where you ride.

I always flirted between 2 and 3 bikes. We moved last year and my local riding is mostly relatively flat, roilling countryside, bridleways, parks, canals, far mtracks and miles and miles of winding narrow tarmac B roads.

I had a FS trail bike, a light XC hardtail, and a Gravel Bike. The hardtail has gone.

If I'm riding locally, and I want to 'get' somewhere (I.E. along the road for a bit to link up some off-road) its much faster on the gravel bike, even with 700x50 and flared drops, than it was on a light XC bike even with super skinny XC summer tyres.

I'f im riding terrain that warrants flat bars and a proper MTB, then why wouldnt I just take my properley capable FS MTB.

Gravel bike is a win for me, personally. YMMV!

I'd agree that if you don't have an MTB otherwise, go for a fast 29er. My Trek Superfly got me into gravel (I basically set it up like an XC race bike and put slick 40mm tyres on it) and then I bought a dedicated gravel bike.

Deep down I suspect the Superfly is still faster on almost all terrain (except tarmac, obviously) just because of wider tyres and the front fork, but I still choose the gravel bike almost every time. It might just a be a fit/comfort thing, I've got the position on the road and gravel bikes pretty much dialled but have never paid as much attention to the MTB, plus I just can't get on with flat bars over distance vs. drops.

OR it might be a geography thing, I live near Stirling and arguably have some great MTB and some good hilly gravel near me that would merit using the 29er, but for actual 'out the front door' rides, I have big, relatively flat gravel loops that are more akin to something like the Paris - Roubaix e.g. chilling out on the tarmac, head down smashing along a short gravel section, recovering on the tarmac, repeat. The drop bar gravel bike lends itself better to that, even if it is slower than the 29er on the rough stuff, it doesn't feel it!. Same argument used to be had about rigid MTB vs. full suss. Full suss might be faster but sometimes you just want to have that 'barely in control' experience 😁

2 or 3 wheelsets makes my Fairlight very flexible. But even 2.2 on 650b isn't enough for me when single-track gets a bit lairy.

One thing I would say from personal experience is that you probably do enjoy road rides, but the accidents have seen you lose the love. My gravel bike has meant I can pick my routes to those lovely rural lanes so still get to enjoy nice quiet roads whilst avoiding the confrontation on the busy routes.

I don't have a mountain bike at present, however I am seriously considering something like a Spark.

So not much of an answer really. Sorry!

An XC MTB can go anywhere a gravel bike can, vice versa not so much

It will be a trade off & you’ll be surprised how quickly a GB will be out of its depth - or certainly not as much fun.

GB: great for fire roads, good quality bridleways, rough tarmac & towpaths. Not so good for anything your MTB wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow at.

MTB: ok at fire road etc with the ability to hit single track with the only limit being skill & appetite.

I have both. I want to do some base it’s the GB, I want XC obviously it’s the MTB. There’s a bit of crossover but the bikes are father apart than you might think.

Rigid - Ti - MTB. Does loads of stuff very well.

Drop bars don't make a whole load sense to me off-road.

Adjust tyres for terrain.

I've got a gravel bike (from before they were called that, I might add 😛 ) and I'll use it if the route I'm doing is mostly road... also have a 29er hardtail, very light, very XC which I'll use on the same tracks or more offroad than road routes. They are pretty interchangeable.. but quite different. Enjoy both just as much. So, er.. both. But you'll probably be able to swap some parts from a road bike to a gravel (eg. the bars and BB) and not to an XC MTB. Hope that helps! 😀

Thanks for your replies/input! Some interesting comparisons from those who have had both types of bike.

Getting rid of the road bike means getting rid of tarmac as much as possible so XC Hardtail is probably the way to go. I do have a 150mm full suss which covers me for the loon factor. The xc bike will cover me for getting the miles in.

I have both

The XC MTB is better off road - more capable and more comfortable however my main use for it is very local stuff where i can be on the trails within about 15 minutes riding. If it involves much more road riding than that i'll take it by car to somewhere more interesting. Whereas with the gravel bike i dont mind riding it for an hour or more to get to good gravel roads, trails, paths and singletrack. It's also better for linking together rides on poor quality roads or taking off road detours or shortcuts that are unsuitable for road bike. For these sections the MTB might be more suited for but if most of the rest of the route is road then the gravel bike is the better choice for me.

Whippet is £799 a currently.
Super bloody bargain.

What you need is an aggro-gravel bike!

I wrote a long post then deleted it! I think the "all rounder bike" thing is a bit off it really depends what you want the bike to do. This is my thoughts broken down into simple terrain categories, then just choose where you sit on your desired riding/local terrain. I have both a xc hardtail and a Gravel bike.

Road: Gravel
Very smooth fire roads: Gravel
Fast fire road descents: Gravel/xc
Bumpy fire roads: xc
Smooth single track: xc
Technical single track: xc
Easier end of enduro tracks: xc
full on Enduro tracks: Neither!

Personally I find the Gravel bike only really works as a robust road bike, for actual off road I find it not much better than any other road bike I have had in the past where I have just abused it taking it off road. It's certainly on more fun than my old M2 Specialized 94 road bike was. And I much prefer climbing on a xc bike, the angles are just better, a gravel bikes BB feels like it's about a foot in front of where it should be. I think xc feel so much nicer, but that's probably just me.
If you want an off road bike an xc bike is more versatile, you can always get semi slicks for it for extra speed, will still be better off road.

And I much prefer climbing on a xc bike, the angles are just better

For me it depends a bit. On-road, I'll take the gravel bike over the XC bike (obviously).

Off-road if it's really loose/lumpy, the XC bike wins.

Otherwise, I find the XC bike is more comfortable for sitting and winching up, but if I really want to attack the climb, a gravel bike is faster.

Getting rid of the road bike means getting rid of tarmac as much as possible so XC Hardtail is probably the way to go. I do have a 150mm full suss which covers me for the loon factor. The xc bike will cover me for getting the miles in.

If that's the case I'd get a gravel over a HT, and maybe a 2nd lighter wheelset/tyres for the FS.

For me it depends a bit. On-road, I’ll take the gravel bike over the XC bike (obviously).

Off-road if it’s really loose/lumpy, the XC bike wins.

Otherwise, I find the XC bike is more comfortable for sitting and winching up, but if I really want to attack the climb, a gravel bike is faster.

Out of the saddle the gravel feels quite nice up hill, but if I had to choose the xc would win for me whatever the terrain it just feels so much nicer, and for me faster. Certainly on any even slightly rougher climbs I am about 10-15% faster on the xc bike...but think that does have a lot to do with the fact I am just more used to the MTB position.

Chucking some decent gravel tyres on an xc bike makes it feel a lot faster and only costs £70-£80. I'd start with that - especially if the xc bike has 29" wheels.

All the ‘fun’ bits of gravel are better on an XC MTB

Personal preference, I think. I enjoy picking a line on my gravel bike, like I did BITD before I had suspension. An mtb is undoubtedly more comfortable though.

On One Mickey or hack up the equivalent with some bar ends like I did, then consult Bicycle Rolling Resistance for an 29er tyre that's quicker than a gravel (spoiler: they measure most XC tyres as quicker than Grav tyres) and you're good to go on a more fun XC bike.

Just to add another comment. Did have a gravel bike till the start of the year. My custom Chisel is faster in my opinion. That's with sworks fasttraks on it. I also lock my sid SL ultimate out. I don't see the point in a gravel bike anymore, the xc rocket is much more capable and spins fast on the roads. I also have a road bike. I sold my Fuel ex 9.8 trail bike. I feel with these two bikes I have more than enough with the xc rocket being highly versatile. Taken it on road rides, gravel, xc, trail centre, some off-piste blacks. Tyre choice, gearing, weight are prime to building something highly versatile.

(spoiler: they measure most XC tyres as quicker than Grav tyres)

I was curious, but that's not really true is it? The fastest gravel tyre is faster than the fastest XC tyre, gravel tyres span a range of 16.6 - 34W and the XC tyres span a range of 19-40W.

But that doesn't take in to account undulations and bumps in the terrain, I could easily be convinced that bigger tyres win back RR over anything bumpier than US style gravel roads.

I was curious, but that’s not really true is it? The fastest gravel tyre is faster than the fastest XC tyre, gravel tyres span a range of 16.6 – 34W and the XC tyres span a range of 19-40W.

But that doesn’t take in to account undulations and bumps in the terrain, I could easily be convinced that bigger tyres win back RR over anything bumpier than US style gravel roads.

Drill into the Grav tyres and you'll see that the low RR ones are all basically road tyres that noone would use for grav in the UK, or possibly anywhere (the 16.6W is a GP5000 @44PSI! At 33PSI it's 21.4W), the first even slightly nobby grav tyre is 1.2mm pimples 25W. So I think I'll stay with my assertion.

And yes, of course the test is on a steel drum not real riding, so if you can infer anything it's that XC tyres are likely faster on road. I doubt anyone would claim that the XC tyres (or bike as a whole) are likely to be slower off road.

Drill into the Grav tyres and you’ll see that the low RR ones are all basically road tyres that noone would use for grav in the UK, or possibly anywhere (the 16.6W is a GP5000 @44PSI! At 33PSI it’s 21.4W), the first even slightly nobby grav tyre is 1.2mm pimples 25W. So I think I’ll stay with my assertion.

And yes, of course the test is on a steel drum not real riding, so if you can infer anything it’s that XC tyres are likely faster on road. I doubt anyone would claim that the XC tyres (or bike as a whole) are likely to be slower off road.

Out of interest are you a member on the rolling resistance. I’m not a member so I have no idea what the pressure regime is for the gravel tyres. The measurements allow for comparison between gravel tyres as I think the pressure allows for the same % deflection. But I can’t see how we can compare the mtb tyres as they were all tested at a standard pressure. The older interior testing regime. Testing at a standard pressure always favours the wider tyres.